Tim Caughran of Quail Forever (left) joins Robert Abernethy, president of the Longleaf Alliance, in signing a Memorandum of Understanding.

Alexandria, LA – -(AmmoLand.com)- Quail Forever and The Longleaf Alliance have established a partner commitment to quail conservation efforts by signing a Memorandum of Understanding (MOU). The announcement was made during this week’s 12th Biennial Longleaf Conference in Alexandria, Louisiana and sets the stage for future partnership projects to restore/manage longleaf forest in its historic range of the Southeast.

History has taught that bobwhite quail are closely associated with longleaf pine communities of the Southeast primarily because of their co-dependence on fire. Fire is the most important natural process that allows the longleaf pine community to thrive, and frequent fire is essential for maintaining suitable quail habitat. Once covering more than 90 million acres, modern landscape changes have fragmented vast longleaf forests of the Southeast most suitable for quail. Coupled with fire suppression or the elimination of prescribed burning altogether, the loss of early-successional habitat in the longleaf ecosystem has been detrimental to bobwhite populations.

“This new agreement sets the stage for working with the Longleaf Alliance and are other close partners to help revert longleaf forests back to a healthier state,” stated Tim Caughran, director of field operations for Quail Forever. “Our goal remains helping to manage longleaf stands for optimal habitat conditions that are conducive to quail and other wildlife. Our new partnership with the Longleaf Alliance is another big step for achieving conservation success in Southeast quail country.”

The MOU establishes a framework of cooperation between Quail Forever and The Longleaf Alliance to work jointly with state agencies and other groups to promote the restoration of